


The Sumerian care of body and soul

by Mary_the_gardener



Category: The Epic of Gilgamesh
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Showering and grooming
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-16
Updated: 2020-12-16
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:28:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28095435
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mary_the_gardener/pseuds/Mary_the_gardener
Summary: My take on what happened in the lacuna before II 162, or rather: what happened after they fought and before Gilgamesh introduced Enkidu to his mother.
Relationships: Enkidu/Gilgamesh (Mesopotamian Mythology)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 17
Collections: Yuletide 2020





	The Sumerian care of body and soul

**Author's Note:**

  * For [The_Kings_Scribe](https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Kings_Scribe/gifts).



> Thank you so much to The_Kings_Scribe for requesting this fandom! I had been wanting to write for it for a while and I really liked your prompts, one of them particularly stuck into my mind and I just couldn't get away from it.  
> I hope you will enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!

  
Gilgamesh took Enkidu by the hand and let him through the door of the palace. He let him through the yard and the stairs. He let him into the second storey and down the corridors.

Gilgamesh took Enkidu by the hand and let him into the bathroom of his palace, where the floors were sloped and the servants brought jars full of clean, warm water. [1]

Gilgamesh opened his mouth and said to Enkidu:

“My mate, we have fought and bonded rolling down in the dust, let us now get rid of all that mud, allow me to take care, with my own hands, of your long hair, of your soiled skin. Allow me to show you the gentle caresses of the most refined flax and let me reveal to you the wonders of sweet-scented oils.” [2]

Gilgamesh the king discarded his robe and poured water upon his body made two-thirds like a god and one third like a human, letting the dirt wash down the drain, and then made Enkidu undress and sit on the stool.

He took the little clay vase and with it gently poured the water on the hair of Enkidu. The water streamed down his bushy hair and seeped through it.

He took the little clay vase and with it gently poured the water on the hair of Enkidu. The water streamed down his wet hair, and washed away the dirt.

He took the little clay vase and with it gently poured the water on the hair of Enkidu. The king's finger ran down his wet hair and gently unknotted it.

He repeated and repeated it, letting the dirt slowly flow out. Gilgamesh let his fingers run through the wet hair and gently massage Enkidu's scalp.

The man from the forest closed his eyes, and his lips stretched out in a curve.

Gilgamesh poured the water from the vase onto the back and shoulders of Enkidu. He let his palms fondle the sun-tanned skin and caress the long hair.

The man from the forest opened his mouth, and a shaky breath escaped his lips.

Gilgamesh poured the water from the vase onto the shoulder and arm of Enkidu. He let his hands wander down the toned limb and feel the powerful muscles.

The man from the forest squeezed his eyes, and his head rolled back on his neck.

Gilgamesh repeated and repeated it, letting the dirt slowly flow out. He washed the other arm and went one more time to the back, softly stroking the bones of his spine.

He poured the water from the vase onto the neck and chest of Enkidu. He let his digits roam the broad pectorals and distractedly graze the dark nipples.

The man from the forest opened his eyes, his head turning to his godlike companion.

Gilgamesh smiled up at him and poured the water from the vase onto the left and right thigh of Enkidu. He let his hands touch the robust trunks that supported the mighty body and wash the mud away.

The man from the forest smiled back at him, and his white teeth showed through his stretched lips.

Gilgamesh poured the water from the vase onto the coarse foot of Enkidu. He sustained it with his hand, his fingers rubbing the callous sole.  
The man from the forest widened his eyes, a bubbly and involuntary laugh leaving his mouth.

Gilgamesh repeated and repeated it, passing his fingers in between the toes of both feet.

When the mud on the trunk and thighs and calves and feet of Enkidu was all washed away Gilgamesh looked into the eyes of his rustic friend and opened his mouth to [LACUNA]

  
  
_After the lacuna the text resumes with Gilgamesh washing Enkidu again:_  
  


. . . . . . . . . water on the stained abdomen of Enkidu.

Again the water flowed, and again the fingers of Gilgamesh skimmed over the browned and hairy skin until it was cleaned a second time.

Gilgamesh then moved to a corner of the room and opened his mouth to speak, saying to Enkidu: "Come, my friend: let us dry ourselves".

A stool stood in the corner, and upon it Enkidu saw some white-yellow fabric.

Gilgamesh took the fabric in his hands, and turned back to the center of the room, saying to Enkidu: "Experience, my friend, the caresses of the softest flax." [3]

Rising to his feet, Enkidu moved: a novel, dull ache somewhere in his frame.

Gilgamesh put the fabric in his hands around Enkidu's shoulders, wrapping him in a soft embrace and soaking up the water beads from his skin.

He rubbed the cloth over his arms and back, roaming over the broad surface, and then under the armpits and torso, the fabric delicate even on the most sensitive parts of the body.

Relishing the unfamiliar sensation, Enkidu let himself be toweled off.

Gilgamesh attentively moved his hands to cover every palm, to make the linen absorb every drop from the muscly and hairy body of Enkidu.

When he deemed himself satisfied, he reached up on a shelf and retrieved a little metal pot. The pot had a lid, and he lifted it, revealing the perfumed oil that was inside.

"Why do you treasure this grease in here?" Asked Enkidu nonplussed.

Answered Gilgamesh: “My friend, this that you see is no simple grease, but fine scented oil that we will now spread over our dry bodies. Come, take a handful and smear it on my skin.”

Dipping his hand inside the pot, Enkidu covered his hand with the balm.

He lifted his arm and brought it to the shoulder of Gilgamesh. He applied the ointment on the skin, his hand carefully descending down on the arm and then up again, following the curve of the shoulder to reach the collarbones and pectorals.

Gilgamesh observed how Enkidu gained confidence, a look of joy on his face.

The man from the forest gathered more oil, rubbing it carefully on the golden skin of the king, tracing the sweep of his neck and the lines of his sides. He smeared it on every body part: he traced the lines of his strong abdominals and mapped with his fingers the robust legs.

Enkidu then walked around Gilgamesh, to apply the lotion on that side too: he rested his palms flat on the broad shoulder blades. His fingers rubbing on the freshly washed skin, he gradually moved down, reaching every area. When he was finished he turned back in front of Gilgamesh, taking the metal pot from his hands.

Immersing his fingers into the oil, Gilgamesh returned the caring act

He meticulously followed every curve of the body of Enkidu, making the dark skin and hair shine with the lotion.

Then Gilgamesh opened his mouth and said briefly to Enkidu: "Sit on the stool now."

Enkidu did as he was told and Gilgamesh stood behind him.

With his right hand he took a lock of hair and moved it from the forehead of Enkidu, his fingers delicately smoothing the wet strands behind.

With his left hand he took a lock of hair and moved it across the other, his fingers swiftly taking hold of both strands.

With his right hand he took one more lock and pulled it behind and over the other, his nimble fingers switching locks between the two hands.

He repeated and repeated it, each time gathering one more strand of hair and adding it to one of the first three locks.[4]

The man from the forest sat still, his back kept upraight.

Gilgamesh crossed and crossed the wet strands of hair, his fingers softly grazing the scalp of Enkidu.

The man from the forest kept quiet, his lines softening.

Gilgamesh crossed and crossed the long hair of Enkidu, his knuckles lightly brushing on the protruding vertebrae.

He meticulously wove the three sections down the firm back of Enkidu, forming a strong and long plait that descended over the column, and when the end was reached he grabbed a stripe of fabric.

Gilgamesh wrapped and tied the band around the plait and then opened his mouth to speak to Enkidu:

"Now I’ve made your hair into a cord that all men will envy, a cord so strong and solid that can pull the trunk of the tallest cedar tree.

Come with me into my quarters and I will clothe you in robes as mines, I will protect your soles with tough leather.  
Thus you will be attired as the most respectable of men, and as such I will present you to Wild-Cow Ninsun, my mother."

**Author's Note:**

> The following fatcs are not 100% matching with the story time-wise, but I took some liberties.
> 
> 1\. Sumerian houses had bathrooms with sloped floors where the people could shower with water that was brought into the buildings in unglazed pottery jars (to facilitate evaporation).  
> Source: [Plumbing in Babylonia](https://www.plumbingsupply.com/pmbabylon.html)
> 
> 2\. It seems soap was invented around 2800 B.C. so, yeah, I ignored it. I also ignored the possible use of ashes because… well, I forgot.  
> Source: [Soap in Mesopotamia](https://brewminate.com/the-dirty-history-of-soap-since-ancient-mesopotamia/)
> 
> 3\. Wool and flax were the most common fabric materials in ancient Sumer, but the production of wool was the main one since letting sheep roam around required less labour than cultivating flax, and linen was limited to elite clothing. Yellow was a color reserved for kings.  
> Source: [Sumerian crafting textiles](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/259931201_Sumerian_and_Akkadian_Industries_Crafting_Textiles)
> 
> 4\. I found that depending on the period sumerian men either shaved themselves or wore their hair in curls, but the settings of Gilgamesh are vague so I choose braids as the fashion of the time, I hope you don’t mind.  
> I also found different sources with different opinions on the ethnicity of Sumerians, and in particular their hair colour: most of them claim that they had black hair, but I also found some that affirm that there has been a mistranslation that led to believe this and that instead they were blond/reddish. And that’s why I carefully avoided mentioning the colour of anyone’s hair.  
> Sources: [Mesopotamian Headwear](http://www.fashionencyclopedia.com/fashion_costume_culture/The-Ancient-World-Mesopotamia/Mesopotamian-Headwear.html), [Sumerian Origins and their Hair Color](http://www.lexiline.com/lexiline/lexi39.htm)


End file.
